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A. FARINETTI. BooT 0R SNOB CLEANING MACHINERY. No. 547,204.

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A. PARINETTI. BOOT 0N SHUB CLEANING MACHINERY.

No. 547,204. Patented Oct. 1, 1895.

NrrE dramas AATENE Erica.

ARTiDono FARINEr'ri, or LoNDoN, ENGLAND, ASSIeNoR on ONE-HALE ToFERDINAND FRANCIS ERNEST HEYSE, or SAME PLAoE.

BOOT OR SHO CLEANHNG MACHINERY.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 547,204, dated Octoberl, 1895.

Application tiled July 10,1894. Renewed June 22, 1895. Serial No.553,718. (No model.) Patented in England May l2, 18193,

To all whom it may concern: A Be it known that l, ARrIDoRo FARINETTI,civil engineer, a subject of the King of Italy, residing at l SeethiugLane, in the city of 5 London,England, have invented certain new anduseful Improvements in Boot or Shoe Cleaning Machinery, (for which Ihave received,in conjunction with Ferdinand Francis Ernest Heyes, of l5Seething Lane aforesaid, Io Letters Patent in Great Britain, No. 9,555,dated May l2, 1893,)of which the followingis a specification.

This invention relates to machinery or apparatus for cleaning boots andshoes, preferably so arranged and adapted'that it can be l set in motionautomatically or by hand on the insertion of a coin intora slot; but itmay also be employed without coin-freed mechanism.

Figure l of the accompanying drawings is zo an elevation, with itscontaining-case in section, of a machine or apparatus constructed inaccordance with this invention; and Fig. 2

is a plan of same with the top ot the containing-case removed. l

2 5 Similar letters of reference relate to like parts in each of thefigures of the drawings.

A is a box or case ofsuitable form, in the upper part or cover of whichare provided two apertures A A2, through which the boots or 3o shoes tobe cleaned, whether on the feet of the wearer or mounted on lasts orstretchers, or

otherwise held, are inserted and retained on foot plates or supports B.These foot plates or supports B are firmly attached to or sus- 3 5pended from a cross-bar C and are provided with suitable stops BX forsteadying the boots or shoes while being cleaned. The cross-bar C alsocarries bearings D for the upper horizontal shaft E, and also thebearing F for the 4o central axis G, as shown. This central axis Grcarries at its upper end the worm-pinion H,

into which gears the worm E on the upper horizontal shaft E. It also haskeyed thereon the large spur-wheel I and passes loosely through holes inthe plates J J it', its lower end turning in the foot-step C in thelower crossbar 0*. The upper and lower crossbars C 0*,

being connected together by the pillars or distance-pieces C2, form arigid frame, which may 5o be held downto any convenient foundation bymeans of holding down bolts passing through the holes C3.

To the under side of the lower plate J 1 is attached by means of theflanged boss K the worm wheel K, such boss encircling the cen- 55 tralaxis G, but being free of the same. The worm-wheel K gears with the wormL', aitached to the counter-shaft L, which runs in bearings C4, carriedby the lower cross-bar (3*. The plates J J* are connected together bythe 6o distance-studs J', the whole forming a case or frame free `torevolve round the central axis G and carrying the vertically-mountedbrushspindles lVLwhich are preferably arranged in pairs, as shown, andhave secured on their upper ends circular brushes of shapes or contoursadapted to Iit more or less accurately the various parts of the boots orshoes to be cleaned. p

Rotary motion is imparted to the case or 7o frame J J* J and to thespindles M and brushesthereon by gearing, belts, and pulleys, orotherwise, as may be convenient, and this motion may be derived from anysuitable motive power--such as an electric motor, or 7 5 acompressed-air or hydraulic motor, for example, or in some caseshand-power.

In the drawings, N represents an electric motor, to which the necessarycurrent is su pplied from a dynamo, primary or secondary 8o batteries,or other suitable source of electric energy. When batteries areemployed, they may be contained within the box or case A, as shown atN', for example.

When it is desired to make the machinery automatic, the motive power isbrought into operation by the introduction of a coin into a slit-such asat A3, for example. This coin may be caused to liberate certainmechanism which will allow the motive power to act auto- 9o matically orwill allow of its being brought into action by any suitable arrangementof well-known coin-freed mechanism. When. an electric motor is employed,asin the case illustrated, the coin may be caused to close the 9 5circuit directly or indirectly. l have not thought it necessary toillustrate this part of the apparatus in detail nor the electricalconnections to the various parts of the apparatus, as these inthemselves form no part of my roo lo the before-mentioned largespur-wheel I on the vertical axis G, as shown. Each of the saidinnermost spindles transfers rotatory motion in the reverse direction toits adjacent spindle by means of further gearing or by r pulleys I andcross-belts, cords, or chains P22 Suitable arrangements are provided forsupplying blacking to the blacking-brushes M2, and in some cases wateror other fluid may be provided periodically and automatically zo to thebrushes or to the cake of blacking in order to soften the latter beforeit is applied to the boot or shoe. For example, Q is a case containingblacking, against the surface of which one of the blacking-brushesrevolves,

z5 as shown. ,Q is a small tank containing water, for example, andprovided with a selfclosing valve Q2, the downwardly-projecting stem Q3of which is adapted to be momentarily pressed upward once duringeach-revolu- 3 o tion of the case or frame J J* J, when the post J2passes across the stationary springplate C, fixed to the upper cross-barC, whereby a few drops of water are allowed to pass the valve at eachsuch revolution at the time the blacking-brushes M2 are passing underthe said valve.

The action of the machine is as follows The person who requires hisboots to be cleaned seats himself on the seat R (which 4o may beadjustable, ifpreferred, according to the height of the person using themachine) and steadies himself, if necessary, by taking hold of thehandle R. He then places his feet through the apertures A in the top ofthe box or cover A on to the foot plates or supports B. He then places acoin of predetermined value and size into the slit, as at A2, forexample, which coin by any suitable or Well-known arrangement ofmechanism 5o starts the motor N. By means of the belt E2 motion iscommunicated from the said motor to the upper horizontal shaft E, thenceby the Worin E and Worm-pinion H to the central axis G and largespur-wheel lf thereon,

and finally by the pinions O, cords P22, and

pulleys P to the spindles M, which carry the brushes M M2 M3 M4 M5,which latter are thus set in rapid rotation. The upper horizontal shaftE also imparts motion by means of the 6o pulley E2 and belt L2 to thecounter-shaft L,

which by the Worm L causes the worm-wheel K and with it the case orframe J JitJ to revolve at a comparatively slow speed. It will now beunderstood that not only is each brush caused to rapidly rotate with itsspindle in the bearings in the plates J J2; in an opposite direction tothat ot' its adjacent brush, but

that the case or frame J J* J', which carries the brushes M M2 M3 M4 M5,is caused to revolve slowly on and independently ot' the central axis G.By this arrangement each successive pair of rapidly-revolving brushes iscaused to pass one on each side of and in contact with the boots to becleaned, whereby that on the left foot is first subjected from toe toheel to the action of the mud or dirt removing brushes h' which then actupon the boot or shoe on vthe right foot from heel to toe. Meanwhile theblacking-brushes M2, having received the necessary quantity of blackingfrom the blacking-case Q and been moistened by the action of the post J2and spring-plate C4 upon the selfclosing valve Q2 ot the watertank Q',as hereinbefore explained, are caused to act upon the booton the lettfoot from toe to heel and then upon the boot on the right foot from heelto toe and the three pairs of polishing-brushes in like manner. The caseor frame J J will during this operation complete one revolution, whileeach brush will have made, say, three hundred revolutions, the boots orshoes being thereby cleaned and polished. On the completion ofone'revolution of the case or frame J Ji J the electric circuit isautomatically broken, (by a commu tator upon the said case or frame, forexample,`) the machine stops, and the person withdraws his feet from theapertures A. A2, or the caso or frame J J2: J'l may be arranged to maketwo or more revolutions, and thus apply the whole or some of the brushesmore than once to the boots or shoes to be cleaned, and may in somecases also be adapted to clean more than one pair or a single boot orshoe at one operation of the machine.

l sometimes employ a guard R* in order to protect the upper part of thefront of the boot from the mud, which might otherwise be deposited thereby the mud or dirt brushes M', more especially in the case of the leftfoot. Other guards may also be employed to protect other parts of theboot during the process of cleaning. A

In order to insure the entire surface ofthe front of the boot or shoebeing cleaned, especially when the said boot or shoe is creased orfurrowed at that part, sometimes provide a swell or projection S, whichcauses the bristles of the brushes as they pass under same to come intoclose contact with the said parts of the boots or shoes, or I sometimesprovide for the same purpose one or more supplementary brushes T,rotated by a separate electric motor U in a ease V, in which an openingV is formed for the introduction of the front part of the boot betweenthe brush T and the top of the case A.

The motor U, and consequently the brush T, preferably remain stationarywhile the frame J J2" J is matting its rotation and the boots or shoesare being operated upon by the brushes M to M5; but just before the saidframe completes its rotation it closes an electric circuit with the saidmotor, which then IOC tog

rotates the brush T a certain number of revolutions, when the saidelectric circuit is opened by suitable mechanism, such as a Worm andWorin-Wheel or other gearing connected with the axis ot the motor orbrush, and the motor and brush then stop. l

It is obvious that instead of the boot-cleaning machinery being drivenby an electric or other motor it may be driven by hand by any suitablearrangement of mechanism and that such mechanism may be governed bycoinfreed apparatus, so that it cannot be used until a cein isintroduced into the slit of such coin-freed apparatus. It is alsoobvious that when the means, Whatever they may be, employed tocommunicate motion to the bootcleaning machinery are governed bycoinfreed apparatus any suitable Well-known device may be employed tostop such motion when the boot-cleaning machinery has completed itsoperation.

I claiml. In an automatic shoe blacking machine a stationary support fora pair of shoes, a revolvingframe carrying a plurality of brushesarranged in pairs, and means for rotatingr the brushes as the framerevolves, substantially as described.

2. In combination, the case, the vertical shaft revolving therein withmeans for driving it, the frame loose on said shaft with means forrotating said frame, the plurality of brushes arranged in pairs andconnections to the brushes from the shaft for revolving them, and thesupports for the pair of shoes arranged one behind the other in the pathof the brushes and adapted to pass said slices successively between4said brushes, substantially as described.

3. In combination the supports for the shoes, the revolving brushestraveling in proximity to said supports, and the stationary deflectorsfor forcing the bristles of the brushes into close contact with allparts of the shoes, substantially as described.

t. In combination the case, the vertical shaft revolving therein, theframe loose on said shaft with means for revolving it, the series ofpairs of spindles on said frame carrying brushes on their upper ends,the gear Wheel on the shaft, the small gears on the inner spindlesmeshing With the gears on the vertical shaft, the operating connectionsbetween the inner and outer spindles, and the supports for the shoes inthe path ot' the brushes, substantially as described.

ARTIDORO FARINET"I.

Witnesses:

STEPHEN EDWARD GUNYoN, WILLIAM ANDERSON SMITH.

